KR20160035526A - Method and apparatus for generating ultrasonic image - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed is an ultrasound imaging apparatus and a method for generating an ultrasound image which can improve picture quality of a random cross-section of a three-dimensional image. The method for generating an ultrasound image comprises the following steps: storing ultrasound echo signals corresponding to each frame constituting a three-dimensional ultrasound image of an object; determining a focal point on an interested cross-section of an object; performing beamforming by using first channel data including phase information obtained from the ultrasound echo signals to generate first beam focusing data for the focal point, and performing beamforming by using second channel data obtained from a location different from the first channel data at a time different from the first channel data to generate second beam focusing data for the focal point; synthesizing the first beam focusing data and the second beam focusing data to generate synthetic beam focusing data; and generating an ultrasound image corresponding to the interested cross-section by using synthetic beam focusing data.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention [0001] The present invention relates to an ultrasound imaging apparatus,

The present invention relates to an ultrasound imaging apparatus and an ultrasound image generating method, and more particularly, to an ultrasound image processing apparatus and method for improving the image quality of a 3D ultrasound image.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus irradiates an ultrasound signal generated from a transducer of a probe to a target object, receives information of an echo signal reflected from the target object, and obtains an image of a site inside the target object. In particular, the ultrasound imaging apparatus is used for medical purposes such as observation of an object, detection of foreign matter, and measurement of an injury. Such an ultrasound imaging apparatus is more stable than the diagnostic apparatus using X-ray, is capable of displaying images in real time, and is safe because there is no radiation exposure, and is widely used with other image diagnostic apparatuses.

The ultrasound system provides a three-dimensional ultrasound image including clinical information such as spatial information and anatomical information that could not be provided in the 2D ultrasound image. That is, the ultrasound system continuously transmits an ultrasound signal to a living body, receives ultrasound signals (i.e., ultrasound echo signals) reflected from the living body to form volume data, and renders volume data to form a 3D ultrasound image.

An ultrasound echo signal corresponding to each of a plurality of frames forming a three-dimensional ultrasound image for a target object is stored and beamforming is performed on a focusing point on a cross section of interest for the target object to generate beam focusing data for the focus point, And an ultrasound imaging device and an ultrasound image generation method for generating an ultrasound image corresponding to a cross section of interest.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for generating an ultrasound image, the method comprising: storing an ultrasound echo signal corresponding to each of a plurality of frames forming a 3D ultrasound image of a target object; Determining a focal point on a cross section of interest for the object; Generating first beam focusing data for the focus point by performing beamforming using first channel data including phase information obtained from the ultrasound echo signal to obtain phase information obtained from the ultrasound echo signal, Performing beamforming using the second channel data to generate second beam focusing data for the focal point; Combining the first beam focusing data and the second beam focusing data to generate composite beam focusing data; And generating an ultrasound image corresponding to the cross-section of interest using the composite beam focusing data, wherein the second channel data is acquired at a different position from the first channel data .

The first channel data may include at least two channel data obtained from an ultrasonic echo signal corresponding to a first frame of the plurality of frames, And at least two channel data obtained from the ultrasound echo signal corresponding to the at least one channel.

The first channel data may include at least two channel data, which are obtained from the ultrasound echo signal, and form a scan line closest to the focus point among a plurality of channel data including the phase information.

The method may further include displaying the ultrasound image.

Also, the displaying step may display an enlarged image obtained by enlarging an image corresponding to a region of interest included in the cross section of interest.

The displaying may further include displaying a 3D ultrasound image of the target object; And displaying the enlarged image superimposed on the region corresponding to the region of interest of the 3D ultrasound image.

The displaying may further include displaying a 3D ultrasound image of the target object; And displaying at least one of an elastic image, a Doppler image, and a fusion image corresponding to the cross section of interest on a partial area of the 3D ultrasound image.

Further, a user input for setting at least one of an interested section of the three-dimensional ultrasonic image generated using the ultrasonic echo signal, a region of interest included in the cross section of interest, a size of the ROI, and an enlargement ratio of the ROI The method comprising the steps of:

An ultrasound imaging apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention includes: a storage unit that stores an ultrasound echo signal corresponding to each of a plurality of frames forming a 3D ultrasound image of a target; Determines a focusing point on a cross section of interest of the target object and performs beamforming using first channel data including phase information obtained from the ultrasound echo signal to generate first beam focusing data for the focusing point And performing beamforming using second channel data including phase information obtained from the ultrasonic echo signal to generate second beam focusing data for a focal point, and the first beam focusing data and the second beam focusing data A beamforming unit for combining the focusing data to generate composite beam focusing data; And an image generator for generating an ultrasound image corresponding to the cross section of interest using the synthesized beam focusing data, wherein the second channel data is obtained at a different position from the first channel data, do.

The first channel data may include at least two channel data obtained from an ultrasonic echo signal corresponding to a first frame of the plurality of frames, And at least two channel data obtained from the ultrasound echo signal corresponding to the at least one channel.

The first channel data may include at least two channel data, which are obtained from the ultrasound echo signal and form a scan line closest to the focal point, among the channel data including the phase information.

The apparatus may further include a display unit for displaying the ultrasound image.

In addition, the display unit may display an enlarged image obtained by enlarging an image corresponding to a region of interest included in the cross section of interest.

Also, the display unit may display a 3D ultrasound image of the target object, and may display the enlarged image on an area corresponding to the ROI of the 3D ultrasound image.

The display unit may display a 3D ultrasound image of the target object and may display at least one of an elastic image, a Doppler image, and a fusion image corresponding to the cross-section of interest on a partial area of the 3D ultrasound image have.

Further, a user input for setting at least one of an interested section of the three-dimensional ultrasonic image generated using the ultrasonic echo signal, a region of interest included in the cross section of interest, a size of the ROI, and an enlargement ratio of the ROI The user input unit may further include a user input unit.

The image quality of an arbitrary section of the 3D ultrasound image can be improved.

It is possible to improve the image quality degradation problem in expanding the 3D ultrasound image.

It is possible to intuitively determine the position of the enlarged region by displaying the enlarged image enlarged in the region of interest superimposed on the region where the region of interest of the 3D ultrasound image is located.

The present invention may be readily understood by reference to the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings, in which reference numerals refer to structural elements.
1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an ultrasound imaging apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a wireless probe according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a flowchart of an ultrasound image generating method according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 is an exemplary diagram for explaining generation of an ultrasound image according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a diagram illustrating beam focusing for generating a three-dimensional ultrasound image according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an ultrasound image display according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG.
7 is a diagram illustrating an ultrasound image display according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
8 is a view illustrating an area of interest display of an ultrasound image according to an embodiment of the present invention.
9 is a block diagram illustrating a structure of an ultrasound imaging apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
10 is a block diagram showing the structure of an ultrasound imaging apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Brief Description of the Drawings The advantages and features of the present invention, and how to accomplish them, will become apparent with reference to the embodiments described hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings. The present invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. To fully disclose the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art, and the invention is only defined by the scope of the claims. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout the specification.

The terms used in this specification will be briefly described and the present invention will be described in detail.

While the present invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Also, in certain cases, there may be a term selected arbitrarily by the applicant, in which case the meaning thereof will be described in detail in the description of the corresponding invention. Therefore, the term used in the present invention should be defined based on the meaning of the term, not on the name of a simple term, but on the entire contents of the present invention.

When an element is referred to as "including" an element throughout the specification, it is to be understood that the element may include other elements as well, without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. Also, as used herein, the term "part " refers to a hardware component such as software, FPGA or ASIC, and" part " However, 'minus' is not limited to software or hardware. The " part " may be configured to reside on an addressable storage medium and may be configured to play back one or more processors. Thus, by way of example, and not limitation, "part (s) " refers to components such as software components, object oriented software components, class components and task components, and processes, Subroutines, segments of program code, drivers, firmware, microcode, circuitry, data, databases, data structures, tables, arrays and variables. The functions provided in the components and "parts " may be combined into a smaller number of components and" parts " or further separated into additional components and "parts ".

Throughout the specification, the term "image" can refer to multi-dimensional data composed of discrete image elements (e.g., pixels in a two-dimensional image and voxels in a three-dimensional image).

The term "ultrasound image " in the entire specification refers to an image of an object obtained using ultrasound. In addition, the subject may comprise a person or an animal, or a part of a person or an animal. For example, the subject may include a liver, a heart, a uterus, a brain, a breast, an organ such as the abdomen, or a blood vessel. In addition, the object may comprise a phantom, and the phantom may refer to a material having a volume very close to the biological density and the effective atomic number.

Throughout the specification, "subject" may include a person or animal, or a portion of a person or animal. For example, the subject may include a liver, a heart, a uterus, a brain, a breast, an organ such as the abdomen, or a blood vessel. The "object" may also include a phantom. A phantom is a material that has a volume that is very close to the density of the organism and the effective atomic number, and can include a spheric phantom that has body-like properties.

Throughout the specification, the term "user" may be a physician, nurse, clinician, medical imaging expert, etc., as a medical professional and may be any technician repairing a medical device, but is not limited thereto.

Throughout the specification, the term " cross section of interest " refers to a cross section of a target object to be displayed in a 3D ultrasound image of the object.

Throughout the specification, the term " region of interest " refers to an area to which additional image processing is to be applied in the ultrasound image. Additional image processing can include, but is not limited to, enlargement, reduction, image enhancement, movement and transformation, and the like. For example, the region of interest may be determined on a 3D ultrasound image. As another example, the region of interest can be determined on the cross section of interest.

Throughout the specification, " channel data " means data before beamforming that includes phase information obtained from an ultrasonic echo signal. The channel data may be used to perform beamforming. The type of channel data before beamforming may include, but is not limited to, RF data, I / Q data, and the like.

Throughout the specification, " beam focusing data " means beam focusing data obtained as a result of beamforming using at least two channel data. The beam focusing data may be used to generate an ultrasound image.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art can easily carry out the present invention. The present invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. In order to clearly explain the present invention in the drawings, parts not related to the description will be omitted.

1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The ultrasonic imaging apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment includes a probe 20, an ultrasonic transmission / reception unit 100, an image processing unit 200, a communication unit 300, a storage unit 400, a user input unit 500, 600, and the various configurations described above may be connected to each other via a bus 700.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can be implemented not only as a cart type but also as a portable type. Examples of portable ultrasound imaging devices include, but are not limited to, a PACS viewer, a smart phone, a laptop computer, a PDA, a tablet PC, and the like.

The probe 20 transmits an ultrasonic signal to the object 10 according to a driving signal applied from the ultrasonic transmitting and receiving unit 100 and receives an echo signal reflected from the object 10. The probe 20 includes a plurality of transducers, and the plurality of transducers generate ultrasonic waves that are vibrated according to an electrical signal to be transmitted and are acoustical energy. The probe 20 may be connected to the main body of the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 in a wired or wireless manner and the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may include a plurality of probes 20 according to an embodiment.

The transmission unit 110 supplies a driving signal to the probe 20 and includes a pulse generation unit 112, a transmission delay unit 114, and a pulsar 116. The pulse generation unit 112 generates a pulse for forming a transmission ultrasonic wave in accordance with a predetermined pulse repetition frequency (PRF), and the transmission delay unit 114 determines a transmission directionality And applies the delay time to the pulse. Each of the pulses to which the delay time is applied corresponds to a plurality of piezoelectric vibrators included in the probe 20, respectively. The pulser 116 applies a driving signal (or a driving pulse) to the probe 20 at a timing corresponding to each pulse to which the delay time is applied.

The receiving unit 120 processes the echo signal received from the probe 20 to generate ultrasonic data and includes an amplifier 122, an ADC (Analog Digital Converter) 124, a receiving delay unit 126, And may include a summation unit 128. The amplifier 122 amplifies the echo signal for each channel, and the ADC 124 analog-converts the amplified echo signal. The reception delay unit 126 applies the delay time for determining the reception directionality to the digitally converted echo signal and the summation unit 128 sums the echo signals processed by the reception delay unit 166 And generates ultrasonic data. Meanwhile, the receiving unit 120 may not include the amplifier 122 according to the embodiment. That is, when the sensitivity of the probe 20 is improved or the processing bit number of the ADC 124 is improved, the amplifier 122 may be omitted.

The image processing unit 200 generates and displays an ultrasound image through a scan conversion process on the ultrasound data generated by the ultrasound transmitting / receiving unit 100. On the other hand, the ultrasound image has a Doppler effect as well as an image of a gray scale obtained by scanning an object in an A mode (amplitude mode), a B mode (brightness mode) and an M mode And may include a Doppler image expressing a moving object by using the Doppler image. The Doppler image may include a blood flow Doppler image (also referred to as a color Doppler image) representing blood flow, a tissue Doppler image representing tissue motion, and a spectral Doppler image representing a moving velocity of the object as a waveform have.

The B mode processing unit 212 extracts and processes the B mode component from the ultrasonic data. The image generating unit 220 can generate an ultrasound image in which the intensity of the signal is expressed by the brightness based on the B mode component extracted by the B mode processing unit 212. [

Similarly, the Doppler processing unit 214 extracts a Doppler component from the ultrasound data, and the image generating unit 220 can generate a Doppler image that expresses the motion of the target object in color or waveform, based on the extracted Doppler component.

The image generating unit 220 may generate a three-dimensional ultrasound image through a volume rendering process on the volume data, and may generate an elastic image by imaging the degree of deformation of the object 10 according to the pressure It is possible. Further, the image generating unit 220 may display various additional information on the ultrasound image in text or graphics. Meanwhile, the generated ultrasound image may be stored in the storage unit 400.

The display unit 230 displays and outputs the generated ultrasound image. The display unit 230 can display various information processed by the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 on the screen through GUI (Graphic User Interface) as well as ultrasound images. Meanwhile, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may include two or more display units 230 according to an embodiment.

The communication unit 300 is connected to the network 30 by wire or wireless, and communicates with an external device or a server. The communication unit 300 can exchange data with other medical devices in a hospital server or a hospital connected through a PACS (Picture Archiving and Communication System). In addition, the communication unit 300 can perform data communication according to the DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine) standard.

The communication unit 300 can transmit and receive data related to diagnosis of a target object such as an ultrasound image, ultrasound data, and Doppler data of the target body 10 through the network 30, A medical image can also be transmitted and received. Further, the communication unit 300 may receive information on the diagnosis history of the patient, the treatment schedule, and the like from the server, and may utilize the information for diagnosis of the target body 10. Further, the communication unit 300 may perform data communication with a doctor or a patient's portable terminal as well as a server or a medical apparatus in a hospital.

The communication unit 300 may be connected to the network 30 by wire or wirelessly to exchange data with the server 32, the medical device 34, or the portable terminal 36. The communication unit 300 may include one or more components that enable communication with an external device and may include, for example, a local communication module 310, a wired communication module 320, and a mobile communication module 330 .

The short range communication module 310 means a module for short range communication within a predetermined distance. The local area communication technology according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a wireless LAN, a Wi-Fi, a Bluetooth, a zigbee, a Wi-Fi Direct, an ultra wideband (UWB) IrDA, Infrared Data Association), BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy), NFC (Near Field Communication), and the like.

The wired communication module 320 is a module for communication using an electrical signal or an optical signal. In the wired communication technology according to an exemplary embodiment, a pair cable, a coaxial cable, an optical fiber cable, an ethernet cable May be included.

The mobile communication module 330 transmits and receives radio signals to at least one of a base station, an external terminal, and a server on a mobile communication network. Here, the wireless signal may include various types of data depending on a voice call signal, a video call signal, or a text / multimedia message transmission / reception.

The storage unit 400 stores various pieces of information processed in the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000. For example, the storage unit 400 may store medical data related to diagnosis of a target object such as input / output ultrasound data and ultrasound images, and may store an algorithm or a program executed in the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000.

The storage unit 400 may be implemented by various types of storage media such as a flash memory, a hard disk, and an EEPROM. Also, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may operate a web storage or a cloud server that performs a storage function of the storage unit 400 on the web.

The user input unit 500 means a unit for receiving data for controlling the ultrasound system 1000 from a user. The user input unit 500 may include a hardware configuration such as a keypad, a mouse, a touch panel, a touch screen, a trackball, a jog switch, etc., but is not limited thereto. The user input unit 500 may include an electrocardiogram measurement module, , A fingerprint recognition sensor, an iris recognition sensor, a depth sensor, a distance sensor, and the like.

The controller 600 controls the operation of the ultrasound system 1000 in general. That is, the control unit 600 controls the operation of the probe 20, the ultrasonic transmission / reception unit 100, the image processing unit 200, the communication unit 300, the storage unit 400, and the user input unit 500 Can be controlled.

Some or all of the probe 20, the ultrasonic transmission / reception unit 100, the image processing unit 200, the communication unit 300, the storage unit 400, the user input unit 500 and the control unit 600 may be operated by a software module But not limited thereto, and some of the above-described configurations may be operated by hardware. At least some of the ultrasonic transmission / reception unit 100, the image processing unit 200, and the communication unit 300 may be included in the controller 600, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a wireless probe 2000 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The wireless probe 2000 includes a plurality of transducers as described with reference to FIG. 1, and may include some or all of the components of the ultrasonic transmitting and receiving unit 100 of FIG. 1 according to an embodiment.

The wireless probe 2000 according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 includes a transmitting unit 2100, a transducer 2200, and a receiving unit 2300, and their configurations have been described in 1, do. Meanwhile, the wireless probe 2000 may selectively include a reception delay unit 2330 and a summation unit 2340 according to the implementation.

The wireless probe 2000 may transmit an ultrasonic signal to a target object 10, receive an echo signal, generate ultrasonic data, and wirelessly transmit the generated ultrasonic data to the ultrasonic imaging apparatus 1000 of FIG.

3 is a flowchart of an ultrasound image generating method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In step 310, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 stores an ultrasound echo signal corresponding to each of a plurality of frames forming a 3D ultrasound image for a target object.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention may transmit an ultrasound signal to a target object and receive and store an ultrasound echo signal reflected from the target object. The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can acquire channel data before beamforming from a stored echo signal. At this time, the channel data before beamforming includes phase information. The type of channel data before beamforming may include, but is not limited to, RF data, I / Q data, and the like.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention uses an ultrasound echo signal to generate ultrasound echo signals corresponding to a plurality of frames forming a 3D ultrasound image, Forming can be performed. That is, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can obtain a voxel value for a focus point on a cross section of interest, which is different from the cross-sections for the object, corresponding to each of a plurality of frames forming the 3D ultrasound image.

In step 320, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 determines a focus point on the cross section of interest for the object.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention performs beamforming on a focusing point between cross sections of a target object corresponding to each of a plurality of frames forming a 3D ultrasound image, The voxel values for the focus points on the cross section of interest that are different from the cross sections for the object, corresponding to each of the plurality of frames forming the image, can be obtained. Accordingly, it is possible to improve the image quality of an arbitrary section of the 3D ultrasound image with respect to the object. In addition, it is possible to improve the problem of deterioration in image quality when enlarging an image of an arbitrary section of a 3D ultrasound image to a target object.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the focal point can be changed as the cross section of interest changes.

In step 330, beamforming is performed using the first channel data including phase information obtained from the ultrasonic echo signal to generate first beam focusing data for the focusing point, and phase information obtained from the ultrasonic echo signal Beamforming is performed using the second channel data including the second beam data to generate second beam focusing data for the focal point. And the second channel data is obtained at a different position from the first channel data.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention uses at least two channel data obtained from an echo signal and forming a scan line closest to a focal point among channel data including phase information, Lt; / RTI > can be performed. The accuracy of the beam focusing data can be improved by using the channel data forming the scan line closest to the focal point.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first channel data may include at least two channel data obtained from an ultrasonic echo signal corresponding to a first one of a plurality of frames forming a three-dimensional ultrasonic image for the object . The second channel data may include at least two channel data obtained from an ultrasonic echo signal corresponding to the second frame of the plurality of frames forming the three-dimensional ultrasonic image for the object. For example, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may include an echo signal corresponding to each of the two sections closest to the focal point, among the plurality of sections for the object, corresponding to each of the plurality of frames forming the three-dimensional ultrasound image , Beamforming can be performed on the focal point. The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may generate beam focusing data by performing beamforming on a focal point using at least two channel data including phase information obtained from each echo signal.

In operation 350, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 combines the first beam focusing data and the second beam focusing data to generate composite beam focusing data.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can generate composite beam focusing data by applying different weights to the respective beam focusing data. For example, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may appropriately adjust the weight to improve the image quality of the ultrasound image.

In operation 350, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 generates an ultrasound image corresponding to a cross section of interest using the synthesized beam focusing data.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention can display an ultrasound image generated using composite beam focusing data. For example, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may display an ultrasound image corresponding to a cross section of interest. As another example, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may display an enlarged image obtained by enlarging an image corresponding to a region of interest included in a cross section of interest.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention can display a 3D ultrasound image of a target object using an ultrasound echo signal reflected from a target object. In addition, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can display an ultrasound image corresponding to a cross section of interest on an area corresponding to a region of interest of the 3D ultrasound image. In addition, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may display an enlarged image of the region of interest on the region corresponding to the region of interest of the 3D ultrasound image. For example, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may display an enlarged image obtained by enlarging an image corresponding to a region of interest included in a cross section of interest on an area corresponding to a region of interest of the 3D ultrasound image. Therefore, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention can intuitively grasp the relative position in the enlarged region or the 3D ultrasound image of the cross section of interest.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to another embodiment of the present invention can display an image on which a display effect for an image corresponding to a cross section of interest is applied on a partial area of a 3D ultrasound image. For example, the display effect may include, but is not limited to, elastic images, Doppler images, and fusion images for the cross section of interest or area of interest.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to another embodiment of the present invention may display a user interface for setting a mode related to display of an ultrasound image based on a user input. For example, the mode associated with the display of the ultrasound image may include at least one of a cross section of interest of the 3D ultrasound image, a region of interest included in the cross section of interest, a display effect applied to the region of interest, a size of the ROI, , But is not limited to this.

4 is an exemplary diagram for explaining generation of an ultrasound image according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 (a) is an exemplary diagram illustrating a process of displaying an ultrasound image corresponding to a cross section of interest in a 3D ultrasound image for a target object.

Referring to Fig. 4 (a), a plurality of cross-sections included in the object are shown. The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may generate a 3D ultrasound image from the frames corresponding to each of the plurality of sections forming the 3D ultrasound image. The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can generate a 3-dimensional ultrasound image using volume data. The volume data is composed of a plurality of frames and includes a voxel having a brightness value. Each of the plurality of voxels has three-dimensional geometry information. The three-dimensional geometry information includes, but is not limited to, three-dimensional coordinate values.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can generate a two-dimensional ultrasound image on one end face of the 3D ultrasound image. The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention can improve the ultrasound image quality when generating a 2D ultrasound image of a cross section different from a plurality of cross sections forming the 3D ultrasound image. In addition, it is possible to solve the problem of lowering the resolution of an enlarged image in which an arbitrary section of interest is enlarged.

FIG. 4B illustrates channel data including phase information obtained from an echo signal corresponding to one of a plurality of cross-sections included in a target object, according to an embodiment of the present invention. Is used to generate the beam focus data.

4 (b), the axial direction 430 indicates the traveling direction of the ultrasonic signal with reference to the conversion element of the probe 20, and the lateral direction 425 indicates the traveling direction of the scan line Direction, and the elevation direction 420 indicates the scanning direction of the frame (i.e., the scanning surface) as the depth direction of the three-dimensional ultrasonic image.

For example, the focal point 490 may correspond to each of the plurality of frames forming the three-dimensional ultrasound image, that is, between the cross-sections for the object, that is, Lt; / RTI >

In one embodiment of the present invention, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 includes at least two ultrasound images including phase information obtained from an echo signal corresponding to a first frame 410, which is one of a plurality of frames forming a 3D ultrasound image, Beamforming may be performed using the channel data 441 to generate a first beam focus data for the focal point 490. [ Also, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may perform beamforming using the channel data obtained at different positions in time different from the channel data used for generating the first beam focusing data, so that the first beam focusing on the focusing point 490 Data can be generated. The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may synthesize at least two beam focusing data for the focal point 490 to generate composite beam focusing data.

5 is a diagram illustrating beam focusing for generating a three-dimensional ultrasound image according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention performs beamforming on a focusing point between cross sections of a target object corresponding to each of a plurality of frames forming a 3D ultrasound image for a target object . That is, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can obtain a voxel value corresponding to a plurality of frames forming the 3D ultrasound image, the voxel values corresponding to the focus points on the target cross-sections different from the cross-sections for the target object.

For example, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may perform beamforming using at least two channel data including phase information obtained from an echo signal corresponding to a first frame of a plurality of frames forming a 3D ultrasound image, To generate the first beam focusing data for the focal point. In addition, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 performs beamforming using at least two channel data including phase information obtained from an echo signal corresponding to a second frame among a plurality of frames forming the 3D ultrasound image , Thereby generating the second beam focusing data for the focus point. The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may combine the first beam focusing data and the second beam focusing data to generate combined beam focusing data.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a case where the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention generates phase information obtained from echo signals corresponding to two frames among a plurality of frames forming a 3D ultrasound image for a target object And performs beamforming using the channel data including the channel data.

5A, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 includes a plurality of frames 510 and 520, which are acquired from a first echo signal corresponding to a first frame 510 of a plurality of frames 510 and 520 forming a 3D ultrasound image, Beamforming may be performed on the focal point 590 using the first channel data 541 including the phase information.

Referring to FIG. 5B, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 includes a plurality of frames 510 and 520, which are obtained from a first echo signal corresponding to a first frame 510 of a plurality of frames 510 and 520 forming a 3D ultrasound image, Beamforming may be performed on the focal point 590 using the second channel data 543 including the phase information.

Referring to FIG. 5C, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 includes a plurality of frames 510 and 520 forming a three-dimensional ultrasound image, and a plurality of frames 510 and 520, which are acquired from a second echo signal corresponding to the second frame 520, Beamforming for the focal point 590 can be performed using the third channel data 561 including the phase information.

Referring to FIG. 5D, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 includes a plurality of frames 510 and 520, which are acquired from a second echo signal corresponding to the second frame 520 of the plurality of frames 510 and 520 forming the 3D ultrasound image, Beamforming for the focal point 590 can be performed using the fourth channel data 563 including the phase information.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may combine the respective beam focusing data to generate composite beam focusing data. That is, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can perform beamforming for each focusing point using channel data that are different in time and space, and combine the beamformed data to generate composite beam focusing data

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can generate composite beam focusing data by applying different weights to the respective beam focusing data. For example, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may appropriately adjust the weight to improve the image quality of the ultrasound image.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can generate an ultrasound image using the composite beam focusing data. For example, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can display an ultrasound image corresponding to a cross section of interest using the composite beam focusing data for the focus point.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an ultrasound image display according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG.

Referring to FIG. 6A, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention may set an interest section 610 for a target object. For example, the ultrasound imaging device 1000 may set the cross section of interest 610 based on user input. In addition, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can receive user input to change the section of interest 610 and display the changed section of interest in real time.

Referring to FIG. 6B, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention may display an enlarged image 620 obtained by enlarging an ultrasound image corresponding to a cross section 610 of interest. For example, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can display an enlarged image 620, which is an enlarged image corresponding to a cross section of interest, on an area corresponding to the section of interest 610 of the 3D ultrasound image.

6 (c), the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to another embodiment of the present invention includes a cross section 610 of interest, so that the screen on which the 3D ultrasound image is displayed is parallel to the direction The ultrasound image corresponding to the ultrasound image can be displayed. For example, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may display an image 630 corresponding to a cross section of interest on an area corresponding to the section of interest 610 of the 3D ultrasound image.

Referring to FIG. 6D, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to another embodiment of the present invention includes an ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 for displaying an ultrasound image (ultrasound image) The enlarged image 620 can be displayed. For example, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can display an enlarged image 620, which is an enlarged image corresponding to a cross section of interest, on an area corresponding to the section of interest 610 of the 3D ultrasound image.

7 is a diagram illustrating an ultrasound image display according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention may display an image to which a display effect for an image corresponding to a cross section of interest is applied on a partial area of a 3D ultrasound image. In addition, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may display an image on which a display effect on an image corresponding to a region of interest included in a cross section of interest is applied, on a partial area of the 3D ultrasound image. For example, the display effect may include, but is not limited to, an elastic image, a Doppler image, and a fusion image for a cross section or region of interest.

Referring to FIG. 7A, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can display an enlarged image of an image corresponding to a region of interest of a 3D ultrasound image, in an overlapping area on a region of interest of the 3D ultrasound image.

Referring to FIG. 7B, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 superimposes an elastic image of an image corresponding to a region of interest included in a section of interest of the 3D ultrasound image on an area where the ROI of the 3D ultrasound image is located Can be displayed.

Referring to FIG. 7 (c), the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 superimposes a Doppler image for an image corresponding to a region of interest included in an interested section of a 3D ultrasound image on a region in which a region of interest of the 3D ultrasound image is located Can be displayed.

Referring to FIG. 7 (d), the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 includes an MR fusion image for an image corresponding to a region of interest included in a cross section of interest of the 3D ultrasound image on an area where the ROI of the 3D ultrasound image is located Can be displayed in a superimposed manner.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, as the position of the ROI is shifted or the shape of the ROI is changed based on the user input, the position of the image to which the display effect is applied is changed or the shape of the image to which the display effect is applied is changed . Further, as the cross section of interest is changed based on the user input, the image to which the display effect is applied can also be changed.

8 is a view illustrating an area of interest display of an ultrasound image according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention may display a user interface for setting a mode related to display of an ultrasound image based on a user input. For example, the mode associated with the display of the ultrasound image may include at least one of a cross section of interest of the 3D ultrasound image, a region of interest included in the cross section of interest, a display effect applied to the region of interest, a size of the ROI, , But is not limited to this.

8, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a 3D ultrasound image 810, a magnified image 820 of a cross section of interest on a target object, and a mode related to display of an ultrasound image The user interface can be displayed. The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can display an enlarged image 820 of a cross section of interest on a target object on the region corresponding to the region of interest 820 of the 3D ultrasound image 810. [ The user interface may include a size 830 of the region of interest 830, an enlargement ratio 840 of the region of interest, and a selection list 850 for applying the display effect applied to the region of interest. The ultrasound imaging device 1000 may determine the region of interest 820 and the cross section of interest 825 based on user input.

The display unit 230 of the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to another embodiment of the present invention may display an ultrasound image on the touch screen. The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may set or change a mode related to display of an ultrasound image based on a touch input on a user interface displayed on a touch screen. The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may further include a region of interest 820, an area of interest 825 and an area of interest of the 3D ultrasound image 810 based on the touch input on the 3D ultrasound image 810 displayed on the touch screen. (E. G., A region of interest).

9 is a block diagram illustrating a structure of an ultrasound imaging apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

9, the ultrasound system 1000 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a storage unit 400, a beam forming unit 900, and an image generating unit 220.

Hereinafter, the components will be described in order.

The storage unit 400 stores ultrasound echo signals corresponding to a plurality of frames forming a three-dimensional ultrasound image for a target object.

The storage unit 400 according to an embodiment of the present invention may store the received echo signal reflected from the object. For example, the ultrasound transmitting / receiving unit 100 may transmit an ultrasound signal to a target object and receive an echo signal reflected from the target object to acquire ultrasound data corresponding to the ultrasound image. The storage unit 400 may store the obtained channel data before beamforming. The channel data before beamforming may include phase information.

The storage unit 400 according to another embodiment of the present invention may acquire ultrasound data from an external or internal device (not shown) connected to the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 by wire or wirelessly.

The beamforming unit 900 determines the focusing point on the cross section of interest for the object and performs beamforming using the first channel data including the phase information obtained from the ultrasonic echo signal to obtain a first beam focusing Beamforming is performed using second channel data including phase information obtained from the ultrasound echo signal to generate second beam focusing data for the focus point and second beam focusing data for the second beam focusing data and second And combines the beam focusing data to generate composite beam focusing data. And the second channel data is obtained at a different position from the first channel data.

The beamforming unit 900 according to an embodiment of the present invention can perform beamforming on the focal point based on the position of the conversion element and the phase of the voxel corresponding to the 3D ultrasound image.

For example, the first channel data may include at least two channel data obtained from an ultrasonic echo signal corresponding to a first one of a plurality of frames forming a three-dimensional ultrasonic image for the object. In addition, the second channel data may include at least two channel data obtained from an ultrasonic echo signal corresponding to the second frame among the plurality of frames forming the three-dimensional ultrasonic image for the object.

The beamforming unit 900 according to an embodiment of the present invention uses at least two channel data, which are obtained from an ultrasonic echo signal and form a scan line closest to a focal point among a plurality of channel data including phase information, Beamforming may be performed to generate beam focusing data for the focus point.

Further, the beamforming unit 900 may combine the respective beam focusing data to generate composite beam focusing data. The beamforming unit 900 may combine and weight each beam focusing data to generate composite beam focusing data. For example, the beamforming unit 900 may combine and assign different weights to each beam focusing data to optimize the image quality of the cross section of interest.

The image generating unit 220 generates the ultrasound image corresponding to the cross section of interest using the composite beam focusing data.

The image generating unit 220 according to an embodiment of the present invention may generate ultrasound data corresponding to the ultrasound image using the composite beam focusing data. The image generating unit 220 may perform signal processing (e.g., gain adjustment, etc.) necessary for forming ultrasound data on the beam focusing data.

In addition, the image generating unit 220 may generate the 3D ultrasound image by rendering the ultrasound volume data. Volume rendering is not described in detail in this embodiment because various known methods can be used.

The image generation unit 220 may generate an ultrasound image corresponding to an arbitrary section of the 3D ultrasound image using the composite beam focusing data for the focus point on an arbitrary section of the 3D ultrasound image Can be generated. Accordingly, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention can improve the image quality of an ultrasound image corresponding to an arbitrary section of the 3D ultrasound image.

10 is a block diagram showing the structure of an ultrasound imaging apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

10, the ultrasound system 1000 includes an ultrasound transceiver 100, a storage unit 400, a beam forming unit 900, an image generating unit 220, A display unit 230, and a user input unit 500. However, not all illustrated components are required. The ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may be implemented by a larger number of components than the illustrated components, and the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 may be implemented by fewer components.

The storage unit 400, the beam forming unit 900, and the image generating unit 220 shown in FIG. 10 include the storage unit 400, the beam forming unit 900, the image generating unit 220, The description corresponding to that of FIG. 9 is omitted.

The ultrasonic transmitting and receiving unit 100 transmits an ultrasonic signal to a target object and receives an echo signal corresponding to the first end face among a plurality of end faces included in the object.

The ultrasonic transducer 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitting unit may sequentially transmit ultrasound signals to a target object to acquire a plurality of frames forming a three-dimensional ultrasound image for the target object. The receiving unit can receive an ultrasonic echo signal reflected from the object.

The display unit 230 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention may display ultrasound images.

For example, the display unit 230 may display a 3D ultrasound image of a target object. Also, the display unit 230 may display an ultrasound image corresponding to a cross section of interest. The display unit 230 may display an ultrasound image corresponding to a cross section of interest such that the screen is parallel to the cross section of interest. The display unit 230 may display an enlarged image obtained by enlarging an image corresponding to a region of interest included in the cross section of interest.

As another example, the display unit 230 may display an enlarged image obtained by enlarging an image corresponding to the region of interest on the region corresponding to the region of interest of the 3D ultrasound image.

As another example, the display unit 230 may display at least one of an elastic image, a Doppler image, and a fusion image corresponding to a cross section of interest on a partial area of the 3D ultrasound image.

As another example, the display unit 230 may display a user interface for setting a mode related to the display of the ultrasound image based on the user input. The user interface can be displayed on the region separated from the 3D ultrasound image. Also, the user interface may be displayed superimposed on the 3D ultrasound image.

The display unit 230 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention may display a 3D ultrasound image of interest on a 3D image of a 3D ultrasound image using a background image. For example, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can display an image corresponding to a cross section of interest only for a desired region, without changing the 3D ultrasound image, which is a background image. As another example, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 can display an enlarged image only for a desired area of the user, without changing the 3D ultrasound image, which is a background image.

The display unit 230 according to another embodiment of the present invention displays an enlarged image obtained by enlarging an image corresponding to a region of interest included in a cross section of interest of the object on the region corresponding to the region of interest of the 3D ultrasound image . Therefore, the ultrasound imaging apparatus 1000 according to another embodiment of the present invention intuitively grasps the relative position in the 3D ultrasound image of the region of interest represented by the enlarged image.

The user input unit 500 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention receives a user input for setting at least one of a cross section of interest of a 3D ultrasound image, a ROI included in a cross section of interest, a ROI size, can do.

One embodiment of the present invention may also be embodied in the form of a recording medium including instructions executable by a computer, such as program modules, being executed by a computer. Computer readable media can be any available media that can be accessed by a computer and includes both volatile and nonvolatile media, removable and non-removable media. In addition, the computer-readable medium can include both computer storage media and communication media. Computer storage media includes both volatile and nonvolatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any method or technology for storage of information such as computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules or other data. Communication media typically includes any information delivery media, including computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data in a modulated data signal such as a carrier wave, or other transport mechanism.

It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing description of the present invention is for illustrative purposes only and that those of ordinary skill in the art can readily understand that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics of the present invention. will be. It is therefore to be understood that the above-described embodiments are illustrative in all aspects and not restrictive. For example, each component described as a single entity may be distributed and implemented, and components described as being distributed may also be implemented in a combined form.

The scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims rather than the detailed description and all changes or modifications derived from the meaning and scope of the claims and their equivalents are to be construed as being included within the scope of the present invention do.

1000: ultrasound imaging apparatus 10: object
20: probe 30: network
100: ultrasound transmitting / receiving unit 200:
220: image generating unit 230:
300: communication unit 400:
500: user input unit 600:
700: bus 900: beam forming section

Claims (16)

Storing an ultrasound echo signal corresponding to each of a plurality of frames forming a three-dimensional ultrasound image for a target object;
Determining a focal point on a cross section of interest for the object;
Generating first beam focusing data for the focus point by performing beamforming using first channel data including phase information obtained from the ultrasound echo signal to obtain phase information obtained from the ultrasound echo signal, Performing beamforming using the second channel data to generate second beam focusing data for the focal point;
Combining the first beam focusing data and the second beam focusing data to generate composite beam focusing data; And
And generating an ultrasound image corresponding to the cross section of interest using the composite beam focusing data,
Wherein the second channel data is obtained at a different position from the first channel data. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the first channel data comprises:
At least two channel data obtained from an ultrasonic echo signal corresponding to a first frame of the plurality of frames,
Wherein the second channel data comprises:
And at least two channel data obtained from an ultrasonic echo signal corresponding to a second frame of the plurality of frames. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the first channel data includes at least two channel data obtained from the ultrasonic echo signal and forming a scan line closest to the focal point among channel data including the phase information. Generation method. The method according to claim 1,
The method comprises:
The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying the ultrasound image. 5. The method of claim 4,
Wherein the displaying comprises:
And displaying an enlarged image obtained by enlarging an image corresponding to a region of interest included in the cross section of interest. 6. The method of claim 5,
Wherein the displaying comprises:
Displaying a 3D ultrasound image of the target object; And
And superimposing the enlarged image on an area corresponding to the region of interest of the 3D ultrasound image. 5. The method of claim 4,
Wherein the displaying comprises:
Displaying a 3D ultrasound image of the target object; And
And displaying at least one of an elastic image, a Doppler image, and a fusion image corresponding to the cross section of interest on a partial area of the 3D ultrasound image in a superimposed manner. The method according to claim 1,
The method comprises:
Receiving a user input for setting at least one of a cross section of interest of the 3D ultrasound image generated using the ultrasound echo signal, a region of interest included in the cross section of interest, a size of the ROI, and an enlargement ratio of the ROI Further comprising the steps of: A storage unit for storing an ultrasonic echo signal corresponding to each of a plurality of frames forming a three-dimensional ultrasonic image for a target object;
Determines a focusing point on a cross section of interest of the target object and performs beamforming using first channel data including phase information obtained from the ultrasound echo signal to generate first beam focusing data for the focusing point And performing beamforming using second channel data including phase information obtained from the ultrasonic echo signal to generate second beam focusing data for the focal point, wherein the first beam focusing data and the second beam focusing data A beam forming unit for combining the beam focusing data to generate combined beam focusing data; And
And an image generator for generating an ultrasound image corresponding to the cross section of interest using the composite beam focusing data, wherein the second channel data is acquired at a different position from the first channel data, , Ultrasound imaging device. 10. The method of claim 9,
Wherein the first channel data comprises:
At least two channel data obtained from an ultrasonic echo signal corresponding to a first frame of the plurality of frames,
Wherein the second channel data comprises:
And at least two channel data obtained from an ultrasonic echo signal corresponding to a second frame of the plurality of frames. 10. The method of claim 9,
Wherein the first channel data includes at least two channel data obtained from the ultrasonic echo signal and forming a scan line closest to the focal point among channel data including the phase information. Device. 10. The method of claim 9,
And a display unit for displaying the ultrasound image. 13. The method of claim 12,
The display unit includes:
And displays an enlarged image obtained by enlarging an image corresponding to a region of interest included in the cross section of interest. 14. The method of claim 13,
The display unit includes:
Dimensional ultrasound image of the target object and superimposes the enlarged image on an area corresponding to the region of interest of the 3D ultrasound image. 13. The method of claim 12,
The display unit includes:
Dimensional ultrasound image corresponding to the cross section of interest, and superimposing at least one of an elastic image, a Doppler image, and a fusion image corresponding to the cross-section of interest on a partial area of the 3D ultrasound image, . 10. The method of claim 9,
A user who receives a user input for setting at least one of a cross section of interest of the three-dimensional ultrasonic image generated using the ultrasonic echo signal, a region of interest included in the cross section of interest, a size of the ROI, Further comprising an input section.

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